After-school activity boosts learning.

After-school programs can contribute to improved student achievement but they don t have to focus on academics to be successful.

Successful programs offer a variety of arts and recreation activities along with reading and writing, concludes research conducted by Policy Studies Associates for The After-School Corporation and the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory.

The study looked at 10 high-performing TASC-supported after-school programs in New York City and found they shared these characteristics:

* A broad mix of enrichment activities like dance, music, art and organized sports that could spark students' interests and expand their goals for careers and hobbies;

* Opportunities for students to build and master literacy and arts skills through reading, story-telling, writing, and performances;

* Building internal relationships among host schools, staff, students and their families;

* Site coordinators with youth development experience and a strong connection to the community, children and families they served;

* Full administrative, fiscal and professional development support from the program's sponsoring organization.

Successful after-school programs do not replicate the school day but instead are "safety zones" where students can explore new interests while also receiving homework help, says Catherine Jordan, director of SEDL's National Partnership for Quality Afterschool Learning.

In one activity that researchers cited, a trained social worker guided a group of seventh and eighth graders in a discussion about drug prevention. Through her questioning, the staff member helped students feel comfortable openly relating their own experiences and thoughts on the subject.

Although the study took place in New York, any school can apply its findings, says Kathleen Carlson, a TASC spokeswoman. "We think that getting this type of research into the field is the best way to improve the quality of after-school programs nationwide," she says.